1968 Ford F-100 – The Bumpside Build Off -Tech

Part 8: Modern-Day Double-Clutchin' Son Of A Gun

Many things are going by the wayside these days, like roadside diners, real service stations, writing letters, single-disc clutches, and mechanical clutch linkages. I’m not too happy about the first three of these things myself, but the last two? Good riddance. But why, you ask? In today’s world of stuffing all kinds of motor and tranny combos in vehicles never meant to host them, the “hydraulic clutch” or hydraulic throwout bearing is making this happen much more easily because of its simple, almost universal design. McLeod Industries has been blazing a trail with this technology for quite some time, and as long as you can mount a clutch master cylinder in your truck, McLeod can set you up with a hydraulic throwout bearing to fit just about any manual transmission.

I knew I was going to ditch the intricate mechanical clutch linkage in my ’68 F-100 in favor of McLeod’s unit since I yanked the stock drivetrain out long ago. With all the chassis and suspension modifications I’ve done to the truck mixed with the fact that I’m installing a ’05-07 Mustang GT 4.6L SOHC V-8 from Ford Racing Performance Parts along with its matching Tremec TR-3650 five-speed tranny, I knew the stock clutch linkage wasn’t gonna cut it, and McLeod’s setup was the answer. What I didn’t know was that they were just about to go into production with their brand-new and somewhat revolutionary RST Street Twin dual-disc clutch for the late-model Mustang family with which my powerplant shares its roots, and yes, there are many more applications on the way.

For the most part, dual-disc clutches have been relegated to the racetrack and do not behave on the street since they usually act as more of an on/off switch for the clutch without the finesse most people want/need on the street. Well, McLeod came up with some new clutch facing material that’ll hold much more horsepower than previous designs and only requires light effort to engage the pedal-it’s like the best of both worlds!

For the most part, dual-disc clutches have been relegated to the racetrack and do not behave on the street since they usually act as more of an on/off switch for the clutch without the finesse most people want/need on the street. Well, McLeod came up with some new clutch facing material that’ll hold much more horsepower than previous designs and only requires light effort to engage the pedal-it’s like the best of both worlds!

McLeod’s Street Twin clutches come in two stages, the RST and the RXT. The main difference between the two is the clutch facing material. The RST uses an organic facing on each side of its two discs and is rated up to a whopping 800 horsepower, and the RXT has a metallic facing rated over 1,000 horsepower, and remember, these are good for street use, which is unheard of! Another reason they hold up to these ratings is that the clutch discs are 9 11/16 inches in diameter, which is smaller than the stock clutch, but there’s over twice the clutch surface area working for you because there are two clutch discs. They are also lightweight, which reduces reciprocating weight and gives the clutch a low moment of inertia that doesn’t require as much horsepower to spin.

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